Dhimitër S. Shuteriqi, a writer, literary historian, professor, academician, and People’s Teacher, passed away. He was born in Elbasan in the family of Simon Shuteriqi in 1915. He attended the French National Lyceum in Korçë (1936) and pursued higher education, graduating in philosophy from the University of Grenoble (1942). He returned to Albania the same year and actively participated in the National Liberation Anti-Fascist War. After liberation, he held responsible positions in educational, cultural, and literary institutions in the country. He was one of the founders of the Writers’ Union of Albania (October 1945), serving as its chairman from 1954 to 1973. He was also the director of the Higher Pedagogical Institute from 1947 to 1950 and a member of the People’s Assembly from 1950 to 1974. Dhimitër Shuteriqi began his literary career in the mid-1930s with poems, short stories, and critical articles. In the early 1950s, he turned to novel writing. He published the first two volumes of the novel “Çlirimtarët” (1952, 1955), but the work remained unfinished. Later, his main focus became short stories. He published collections such as “Fyelli i Marsiasit” (1963), “Kënga dhe pushka” (1972), “Maratonomaku ynë” (1977), “60 tregime në një” (1979), “Buka e thika” (2002), and others. His attention was drawn to significant historical events, figures of national history and culture, the difficult life of ordinary people, and their sacrifices during the war, as well as dramatic and poetic events of the time. Legendary figures like Gjorg Golemi, Marin Barleti, Pjetër Budi, Dhaskal Todri, Ismail Qemali, Dora d’Istria, Andon Z. Çajupi, among others, are immortalized in his works. Dhimitër Shuteriqi’s main field of scientific work was the history of literature, the early tradition of Albanian writing, folklore, and several historical figures. His research in these fields resulted in the publication of a corpus of works and studies, such as “Shkrimet shqipe” (1965, 1976) and “Tekstet shqipe dhe shkrimi i shqipes në v. 879–1800” (2005), shedding light not only on the beginnings of Albanian writing but also on the roots of literary and cultural traditions, significant figures of humanism, the Middle Ages, and the Albanian Renaissance literature, circulating unknown texts and new scientific ideas. Dhimitër Shuteriqi was a co-author and editor of the comprehensive work “Historia e letërsisë shqipe” I, II (1959, 1960), published by the University of Tirana, the chief editor of the work “Historia e letërsisë shqiptare” (1983), published by the Academy of Sciences; author of the monograph “Naim Frashëri – jeta dhe vepra” (1982), as well as many articles and studies published in scientific journals and periodicals. He was one of the founders of the literary historiographical school in Albania. Dhimitër Shuteriqi was decorated with the “Order of the Flag” and received the First Class Republic Prize. (In the photo: Dhimitër Shuteriqi)
Text: Albanian encyclopedic dictionary – Vol. 3 , Academy of Sciences of Albania, “Kristalina-KH”, Tirana, 2009, pages 2647-2648.
Photo: © https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dhimit%C3%ABr_Shuteriqi
Graphic processing: AHCF
